Treatment of Uterine cancer
Best hospitals and doctors for uterine cancer treatment abroad
Leading hospitals
Cost for treatment
The uterine cancer is a pathological proliferation of a thin inner layer of the uterine wall, which is responsible for creating optimal conditions for the fetus during pregnancy. Statistics show that in 75% of cases, uterine cancer is likely to be avoided with timely gynecological check-up and avoiding risk factors.
Content
- Types of uterine tumors
- Symptoms
- Surgery
- Radiation therapy
- Chemotherapy
- How is the cancer stage identified?
- Stage 1
- Stage 2
- Stage 3
- Stage 4
- Hospitals for uterine cancer treatment abroad
- The cost of treatment abroad
- How to get the best treatment abroad?
Types of uterine tumors
Uterine cancer is divided into two etiological and pathogenetic types.
The first type, which occurs in about 60-70% of cases, is hormone-dependent. The main cause of its occurrence is persistent hyperestrogenemia (increased concentration of estrogen in the blood). As a rule, tumors of the first type have a high differentiation and a relatively favorable prognosis, since they are very sensitive to progestins (another type of sex hormones).
The second type occurs against the background of endometrial atrophy, in the absence of hormonal influence. It usually affects menopausal women. In most cases it has low cell differentiation and a less favorable prognosis, because it doesn’t respond to progestin treatment and tends to metastasizing.
Diabetes mellitus, infertility, obesity, metabolic changes in the body, prolonged use of hormonal drugs, arterial hypertension, and other factors contribute to the development of uterine cancer.
Symptoms
Uterine cancer symptoms are directly related to menstrual function. Since in most cases (about 75%) the disease manifests itself in the menopause, the woman begins to worry about bloody discharge. It can differ in severity and nature.
As the process progresses and the tumor affects adjacent organs and tissues, the clinical picture may be supplemented by characteristic symptoms, such as abdominal pain, constipation, frequent urination, ascites, etc. Sometimes there is a purulent discharge from the vagina and pus inside the uterus is formed.
Approximately 8% of patients have no symptoms of uterine cancer. In menstruating women, the pathological process is manifested by prolonged, profuse discharge and non-cyclic bleeding.
Surgery
Many uterine cancers are detected at very early stages, while cancers are subject to surgery. The treatment options for uterine cancer are identified with accordance to how much the body is affected by uterine cancer.
A hysterectomy, a surgery for uterine cancer treatment, involves the uterine excision, and sometimes along with ovaries.
A hysterectomy may be performed by open or laparoscopic methods. The choice of the hysterectomy type is conducted in accordance with the general health condition of the patient and the peculiarities of the tumor.
Radiation therapy
Radiation therapy for uterine cancer treatment is based on the highest precision of directing ionizing rays at cancer cells. This allows using high radiation doses without significant damage to healthy tissues. This has become possible due to new technologies based on the usage of linear particle accelerators for directing beams at strictly specified points. Modern radiation therapy does not cause significant harm to healthy tissues.
Chemotherapy
The uterine cancer treatment options for initial stages of the pathology include surgery and radiation therapy. Chemotherapy is carried out in the following treatment options:
- Pre-surgical chemotherapy for uterine cancer treatment is carried out in order to reduce the tumor size before surgery
- Post-surgical chemotherapy belongs to treatment options aimed at suppressing the remaining malignant cells that were not detected by radiological research methods
As an independent method of uterine cancer treatment, chemotherapy is carried out in patients with contraindications for surgery. Most often, chemotherapy in these cases is performed with radiation therapy.
Palliative chemotherapeutic treatment options are prescribed for patients with terminal stages, in order to eliminate symptoms.
How is the cancer stage identified?
First, the cancer stage is determined by examining tissue removed during the intervention. This process is called surgical staging. The need for such a procedure is driven by the fact that doctors often cannot accurately determine the stage of the cancer until they receive tissue samples. Before the operation, the doctor may prescribe ultrasound scan, MRI, and CT for uterine cancer diagnosis making. Although the accuracy of these methods is inferior to the accuracy of surgical staging, the information obtained can be useful in planning surgery and other procedures.
Stage 1
At the initial stage of the cancer, uterine cancer is limited by the organ’s borders.
Malignant cells may spread to the endometrium and grow from it through the lower muscle layer of the organ or the entire muscle layer. The pathology, however, doesn’t go beyond the uterus.
Treatment options for uterine cancer at its initial stages include surgery or extrafascial excision of the uterus with appendages.
Treatment options for uterine cancer with a high risk of metastasizing involve the greater omentum removal. Sometimes, pelvic and lumbar lymphadenectomy treatment options are indicated as well.
Preoperative radiation therapy doesn’t belong to the treatment options for uterine cancer of the initial stage, due to insufficient information about its effectiveness.
Stage 2
Approximately 30% of patients with second-stage uterine cancer have metastases in the pelvic lymph nodes. The risk of affection of the lumbar lymph nodes, ovaries, and dissemination along the peritoneum at the second stage is higher than at the first.
Treatment options for uterine cancer stage 2 are surgery at the volume of the first-stage uterine cancer treatment, followed by adjuvant treatment in the form of chemotherapy or radiation therapy. Indications for adjuvant treatment options depend on intraoperative findings.
Stage 3
The treatment options for uterine cancer of the third stage are determined individually.
Uterine cancer treatment usually begins with surgery. Surgery at this stage is mandatory if the examination reveals a volumetric formation in the area of the uterine appendages.
If it is necessary to combine chemotherapy and radiation therapy, the most effective scheme includes administration of several courses of chemotherapy, then radiation therapy, and then the continuation of chemotherapy.
The results of combined treatment options for the third stages are better than the results of cancer treatment with chemotherapy alone.
Stage 4
In women with stage 4 uterine cancer, the rectum or bladder is affected.
For uterine cancer of stage 4, treatment options of embolization and chemoembolization are applied.
Embolization is a painless procedure for stage 4 uterine cancer, except for unpleasant feelings during the puncture of the femoral artery. For this, a thin catheter is inserted into the artery and is moved directly to the uterine artery under imaging control. This procedure for the treatment of stage 4 uterine cancer involves administration of the particles with chemotherapy drug, which blocks vessels feeding the neoplasm.
Embolization in patients with stage 4 uterine cancer leads to alleviation of symptoms. Immediately after the intervention, menstrual bleeding is normalized, its volume and duration decrease. Pain symptoms are also reduced; this process is somewhat longer and can take several weeks or months. A decrease in the volume of myomatous nodes, as well as in the size of the uterus, occurs within the first 6-8 months after the embolization for stage 4 uterine cancer.
It is important to note that the embolization for stage 4 uterine cancer is absolutely safe and cannot cause allergic reactions.
Hospitals for uterine cancer treatment abroad
Citizens of many countries are increasingly giving preference to receiving medical help in foreign hospitals. A special place in the field of medical tourism is occupied by the treatment of oncological diseases, including vulvar cancer. In foreign hospitals, patients receive the maximum chance for a complete recovery. Only in hospitals in countries with a high level of medical development, doctors treat even the most complex types of cancer. The best results in the fight against cancer can be achieved through the use of state-of-the-art technologies present in hospitals, the latest pharmaceutical developments, and alternative approaches to treatment in foreign hospitals.
The patient may choose the best hospital for treatment among other hospitals independently, based on the personal preferences, international ratings, and pricing policies. It is really necessary to look at the specialization and experience of hospitals in performing specific treatments.
We recommend undergoing gynecological examination and treatment of uterine cancer in:
- University Hospital Rechts der Isar Munich, Germany
- Charite University Hospital Berlin, Germany
- University Hospital Erlangen, Germany
- University Hospital Heidelberg, Germany
- University Hospital Halle (Saale), Germany
- University Hospital Hamburg-Eppendorf, Germany
The information about the services mentioned hospitals provide is available on the Booking Health website.
The cost of treatment abroad
It is natural to want to know the price of treatment abroad in advance. Unfortunately, it is almost impossible to find out the exact figure. This is due to the fact that only upon arrival at the clinic, doctors will be able to determine the exact state of the patient's health, learn about the features of the development and course of the disease, and so on. Further, they prescribe specific treatment regimens with a fixed price. Thus, it is not possible to know the cost of treatment abroad without preliminary examination.
What’s possible is to learn the average prices of different treatment options for uterine cancer.
With that said, the cost of treatment with hysterectomy starts at 4,283 EUR.
The cost of treatment with hysterectomy, adnexectomy, and lymphadenectomy starts at 6,464 EUR.
The cost of treatment with radiation therapy and chemotherapy starts at 9,686 EUR.
How to get the best treatment abroad?
Booking Health gives you a guarantee for receiving the best cancer care. The risk of being treated by insufficiently qualified clinicians is completely excluded. Booking Health cooperates only with experienced specialists and licensed hospitals.
Booking Health takes care of the various aspects of treatment abroad, including preparation of documents, visa support, interpreting services, booking accommodation and optimization of the treatment process. Thus, Booking Health saves the patient's time and financial expenses.
Feel free to contact Booking Health right now to get a personalized medical program for cancer treatment abroad in world-known hospitals.
Authors:
The article was edited by medical experts, board certified doctors Dr. Nadezhda Ivanisova and Dr. Sergey Pashchenko. For the treatment of the conditions referred to in the article, you must consult a doctor; the information in the article is not intended for self-medication!
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